On Sunday Chrissie Wellington, of Great Britain, won the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii! It was only her second Ironman and she only started training full time a year ago. In fact, if you read her biog she is a relative newcomer to competitive sport. Believe me, this is an outstanding achievement which deserves huge recognition.

Flakey

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GIRUY

Oh to be able to train fulltime......

What a woman!!

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In spite of the cost of living, it's still popular.

Bird in Boots

That's pretty impressive. But then, she has done literally nothing except run, swim, bike, eat and sleep for an entire year. I don't envy her

oh, I dunno... I could do the eat, sleep and run bit




and probably in that order

I've tried full-time athletics. Mrs. Thatcher used to pay me a small amount of money for the privilege...
...every two weeks...
...in the guise of a dole cheque!
My running didn't improve at all, and it was no fun at all just waiting for that next run. There were times (and this is no exaggeration) when I'd get ready for a run, but couldn't decide where to go. I'd literally stand at the door for 30 or so minutes before being able to force myself outside! I actually found it hard work having noting to do except run. My best running periods came when I was fitting 100+ miles a week around full-time-on-my-feet-all-day employment.

QUESTION: HAS LOTTERY FUNDING MADE OUR INTERNATIONAL ATHLETES LAZY UNDER-ACHIEVERS?

... Or not?

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ONLY THOSE WHO WILL RISK GOING TOO FAR CAN POSSIBLY FIND OUT HOW FAR THEY CAN GO.

That's exactly how I started running, as an alternative to work after Maggie decided she didn't want me any more. So I suppose I became a full time athlete - though I didn't achieve what Chrissie Wellington did. She's incredible.
Cheers!

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Give me the hills!

Ah, so I wasn't the only person to watch then! Definately a fantastic effort and an incredible result, my respect goes to anyone that can complete those distances!

I guess training full-time for a multi-disciple event is a little more forgiving (on the mind) than training full-time as a runner. I'd still like to give it a go sometime though!

Yes, the variety would be good, plus the amount of hours it must take to get to the top in three separate disciplines must be pretty incredible and make it hard to fit round a job.

I don't think lottery funding has made our athletes lazy; although I think it could be better spent by encouraging people into sports at an earlier age, with more opportunities there, than giving them cash when they are already good, and maybe pull in some money from sponsorship or winning races. Lots of schools now don't have sports fields or make any serious effort with teams & events, and it's a lot harder to get to the top if you start late

Anyway, a lot of respect to anyone who can run an Ironman. One day, when I get a bike without training wheels, and a swimming suit without inflateable armbands, I might just do the same

Is that meant to be some sort of christmas reference, Richard?

(Sorry, couldn't resist that one).

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ONLY THOSE WHO WILL RISK GOING TOO FAR CAN POSSIBLY FIND OUT HOW FAR THEY CAN GO.